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Aide Asked State Police to Contact His Accuser

ALBANY — David W. Johnson, a top aide to Gov. David A. Paterson, reached out to the commander of the governor’s State Police detail the day after an altercation with his girlfriend and asked the commander to call the woman, according to a person briefed on the commander’s actions.

The commander, Maj. Charles Day, tried to reach the top official in the State Police, Superintendent Harry J. Corbitt, but was unsuccessful. He then turned to his immediate superior, First Deputy Superintendent Pedro J. Perez. Mr. Perez authorized Major Day to contact the woman, the person briefed on the sequence of events said, and Major Day did so on at least three occasions.

It is not clear how many times Major Day contacted the woman, whether he did so by phone or in person, or what he said to her, according to the person briefed on his efforts. But Major Day, who communicated frequently with Mr. Johnson regarding Mr. Paterson’s daily schedule, knew both Mr. Johnson and his girlfriend personally, the person said.

Major Day was interviewed for several hours on Friday at the Manhattan offices of Attorney General Andrew M. Cuomo, who is investigating whether Governor Paterson, his aides or members of the State Police improperly intervened in the domestic dispute case between Mr. Johnson and the woman, who had sought court-ordered protection from Mr. Johnson after she told the police that she was assaulted on Oct. 31.

Mr. Corbitt acknowledged this week that a State Police officer visited the woman in the first hours or days after the episode, at the Bronx apartment shared by Mr. Johnson, the woman and her 13-year-old son. He described the visit as customary in episodes that might attract media attention, an assertion dismissed as false by many inside and outside the State Police. He also said that it was meant merely to offer the woman counseling and tell her she had “options.”

Two days after the woman says Mr. Johnson choked her, ripped off her clothing and prevented her from calling for help, she went to Family Court in the Bronx to seek an order of protection. She complained under oath then, and in a court appearance two days later, that troopers had been pressuring and harassing her not to pursue charges or obtain the order of protection.

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She was twice granted temporary orders of protection, but confusion over whether Mr. Johnson had actually been served with the court papers extended the case into February.

A lawyer for the woman said that on Feb. 7, the eve of the next court date, an intermediary from the Paterson administration called her and encouraged her to call Mr. Paterson, an account the administration now does not dispute. The lawyer, Lawrence B. Saftler, said Mr. Paterson did not bring up the assault allegation, but offered her his help and said he wanted to check that the woman was all right.

The woman, who asked not to be identified because she said she feared retaliation, did not appear in court the next day, and, as a result, the case was dismissed.

Denise E. O’Donnell, the administration’s top criminal justice official, resigned Thursday, saying Mr. Corbitt had misled her in January when she learned of the episode involving Mr. Johnson and asked if the State Police had any involvement.

On Friday, in an internal memorandum sent to all State Police employees, Mr. Corbitt denied having misled Ms. O’Donnell.

“Simply put, that did not happen,” he wrote. “I would not tarnish the reputation of this agency and its employees by reporting inaccurate information. I cannot comment on the particulars of the investigation, but only ask that you withhold judgment pending the results of the investigation.”

William K. Rashbaum contributed reporting from New York.

A version of this article appears in print on February 27, 2010, on Page A17 of the New York edition with the headline: Aide Is Said to Have Asked Police Official to Call Accuser. Order Reprints|Today's Paper|Subscribe